About a year and a half ago, Robin Collier and her husband, Wayne, were like millions of other Americans: overweight and living with Type 2 diabetes. Despite multiple diets, the couple could not seem to lose much weight. Then Ms. Collier’s doctor told her she was going to need daily insulin shots to control her diabetes. That was the motivation she needed.
“I made up my mind right then and there,” said Ms. Collier, 62, an administrator at an accounting firm in Lafayette, Ind. “I said to myself, ‘I’m not going on insulin. I’m too young to have this disease.’”
Instead, Ms. Collier and her husband entered a study sponsored by a company called Virta Health, one of a new crop of high-tech companies that have designed programs aimed at helping people prevent or even reverse their diabetes.
On the program, patients video-chat with a remote Virta doctor, who consults with their primary care doctor, reviews their blood tests and medical history, and makes diet and drug recommendations. While studies show that a variety of different diets can benefit people with Type 2 diabetes, Virta, based in San Francisco, takes a low-carbohydrate approach, training patients to swap foods like pastries, pasta and sugary snacks for veggie omelets, almonds and salads with grilled chicken and beef.
Every day, patients use an app to upload their blood sugar levels, blood pressure, body weight and other measurements. A health coach, usually a registered dietitian, monitors their data and checks in by phone, text or email to discuss any problems or just to provide daily encouragement.
Continue reading the main story
Related Coverage
PATIENT VOICES
Patient Voices: Type 2 Diabetes MARCH 14, 2017
THE NEW HEALTH CARE
You Mean I Don’t Have to Show Up? The Promise of Telemedicine MAY 16, 2016
WELL
Hope for Reversing Type 2 Diabetes APRIL 18, 2016
Today, Ms. Collier has lost 75 pounds and has avoided taking insulin. Her husband has lost 45 pounds and was able to stop two diabetes medications. Both are still in the program, which she called “life changing,” as part of an ongoing clinical trial.
Source
No comments:
Post a Comment